This is a small polychrome plate by Dolores Curran.  She continues to create intricately incised and painted pottery.  She was inspired to create these red polychrome incised and painted by her husband, Alvin Curran.  He was known for his incised San Juan-style pottery in the late 1990s.  This is a plate or shallow dish.  The front has a double butterfly design in the center.  There are small birds on the sides.  The rim is fully polished and painted with cloud patterns. The back is also incised with a feather design!  Amazing amount of work for the size of the piece.

Dolores said of this piece;

The two etched symbols on the inside of the polished area represent birds. The center is a decorated bustle used in various dances with feathers. The bustle has step, lightning, and mountain designs. In the center is a deep carved flower symbol.”

All the colorations are from natural clay slips.  It is an extraordinary amount of time to create pieces intricate both in design and to use the various clay additions.   The plate is signed on the bottom in the clay, “Dolores Curran”.